Our History
The idea of VAS UK came about when Chance X, a much loved and very successful grassroots event horse, sustained a potentially career ending stifle injury. Through a combination of careful diagnosis, arthroscopic surgery, intra articular medical and regenerative therapy, rehabilitation and physiotherapy - Chance X was able to return to his eventing career and provide ongoing success and happiness to his teenage rider and supporters.
Chance
Chance prior to injury
His owner, Jenny walton (http://linkedin.com/in/jen-walton-3b64a234) a veterinary surgeon herself, who has a long background in veterinary blood banking founded VAS UK whilst studying for her masters in lyophilized platelet use in dogs. Dr Anne Hale (http://linkedin.com/in/anne-hale-27696146) veterinary surgeon, Jenny’s mentor and sponsor for the masters - provided 30yrs of expertise in veterinary apheresis, transfusion medicine and regenerative medicine to assist in developing the programme.
An injection of platelet rich plasma (prp) was used in Chance’s therapy but Jenny and Anne felt that there was a way to improve how this was sourced and utilised, due to their knowledge of apheresis technology.
The consideration that prp could also be stored as lysate if collected in appropriate quantities, allowed the idea of an individual horse's “bank” of multiple regenerative injections to be collected during one event from that horse that could be used over the coming months/years.
Equine platelet lysate bank
Apheresis allows the collection of an autologous, increased and more reliable concentration (compared to most low volume whole blood filtration and centrifugation methods), red cell white cell- reduced, aseptically prepared platelet product.
In a 45min event around 200ml of PRP is collected from an individual horse. Post collection, a specially designed separation system developed by veterinary and human blood bankers (Innovative animal supplies - IAS https://innovativeanimalsupplies.com/) the sterile preparation of 15 aliquot doses of 10-25ml is performed. Quantities can be tailored to the treating vets requirement. A prp injection can be used immediately intra-lesion or intra-articularly in an injured horse. The additional aliquots are frozen between -20/80°c for 2-5yrs depending on storage conditions and the injury being managed. Freezing results in the PRP becoming equine platelet lysate which contains the platelet proteome (content) which is considered beneficial in creating the healing environment that we look for in regenerative medicine. With injury injections in horses standardly being between 4-10ml, this process allows at least 15 separate treatments per horse.
surge phase.MP4Surge phase showing platelets being expressed into the collection bag. There is visible “swirl” of the particulate platelets within the plasma. This is the first and most basic quality control test.
prp injection.mp4An example of an intra articular prp injection. In this case, injection into a coffin joint. The skin over the injection site is clipped and surgically prepared prior to injection.
Post apheresis picture of a patient with their bank of treatment who had just received their intra articular injections as part of a treatment regime for stifle injury. The story going full circle, working with vets to treat patients with the same injury that chance had.
Chance- his return to competition after his treatment